2022 Year in Review

As I’ve done in years past, I’m taking some time to sum up 2022 with a picture from each month.

Not much happened in January. I had spinal cord surgery in December and spent most of January recovering and staying warm inside (mostly staying warm, recovery was actually pretty quick). But this sunset view from our living room window is a perennial favorite. It’s different every day, but if there’s any sun, it’s always worth taking a look. God is an amazing artist!

By the time February rolled around, I was ready to get out of the cold, so we took a trip to Bradenton, Florida. It was cooler than what I’d hoped for, but we still managed to have fun. On the only rainy day, we decided to go to the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature. The museum has a fantastic planetarium and a manatee rehabilitation habitat. Manatees are the cutest, ugly animals I’ve ever seen. As they say, “they have a face only a mother could love.” This guy looks happy though don’t you think?

When I looked at the picture I’d previously chosen for March, I thought, “Surely I did something more fun than look at the frozen lake in March.” I had my knee replaced, but that wasn’t fun, and gratefully there are no pictures. But at the beginning of the month, I met our son Adam and his family at the Bell Museum on the University of Minnesota campus. While this picture isn’t my best picture of the month, it’s the most interesting. At first glance, you see a giant moth under glass. If you look closely at the wings though, you’ll see that the markings on the moth’s wings are a perfect picture of a snake. Wild, huh? And again, I have to say, “God is an amazing artist!”

April brought some damaging hail to our little town. The construction crews of Minnesota were kept busy for most of the summer replacing roofs all around town, ours included. By the way, if you can manage it, try not to be home on the day the roofers are there. It is LOUD!

May brought with it a 2022 highlight. John and I met my brothers and sisters-in-law in Kansas City for a long weekend. We did many of the same things we used to do when we’d visit our grandparents there as kids. And a trip to Kansas City always involved at least one lunch at Winstead’s Steakburgers. Not much has changed at Winstead’s since we were kids. Their burgers aren’t life-changing, but their shakes are still tough to beat.

June is probably my favorite summer month. Though many of the perennial bulbs bloom in May, some of my favorites bloom in June. We just planted this iris last fall (technically, our son planted it for us) and it produced some lovely flowers this year.

One of my favorite things to do in the summer is drive to the local lake and watch the sun go down. It’s different every time and always beautiful. On a gorgeous, warm July day last summer, I was at the lake taking pictures and noticed this group sitting and waiting for the sun to set. The kids were playing, and it seemed as though watching the sunset was an event they had on their agenda as part of their time at the beach. I love seeing people taking the time to enjoy God’s creation!

My brother invited me to use his home in Pacific Grove, California in August, so I immediately said, “yes, please” and booked myself a flight. John chose to stay home. Both of my sisters-in-law were able to join me for part of the week. Pacific Grove is simply one of my favorite places in the world. Usually, when I’m there, I take thousands of pictures of the ocean (this time was no exception), but I also took this picture of the wooded area behind my brother’s house and loved how it turned out.

I didn’t take a lot of pictures in September, so I chose another photo from our local lake. There is a beautiful park between the parking lot and the beach. To the left in this picture, there’s a splash pad and play area. On the far right, under the blue canopy there is green lounge chair that is only partially visible. As often as I’m able, I head to that chair to spend some time reading.

October in Minnesota is beautiful. The leaves are gorgeous, the mosquitoes are dead, and there are lots of yummy pumpkin treats. If you’re going to visit Minnesota, fall, in my opinion, is the best time to do so. I do have one friend who hates the fall. It’s not that she doesn’t care for the beautiful leaves or an occasional pumpkin latte, she is just too well aware that fall only lasts about three weeks and winter is close on its heels. This year, the maple tree in our front yard did not disappoint.

Most often, when I take a sunset picture from our house, it’s from our living room window. But in November, I was sitting downstairs and noticed the beautiful colors in the sky. So, I snuck into the backyard and grabbed a picture of the sky over the woods behind our house. Isn’t that the most beautiful shade of purple?

Sure enough, right on schedule, winter arrived. By mid-December, we were busy shoveling five inches of heavy, wet snow. (Well, I didn’t actually shovel any snow, but John was very grateful for our snow-blower.)However, I did spend some time driving around town to search for beautiful picture spots. This little church is beautiful year-round, but surrounded by snow, it’s just spectacular and takes the prize for my favorite picture of the year.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading! To be honest, I do this little summary of the year just as much (if not more) for me as I do for you. I hope you enjoyed the pictures and will take some time this year to notice the beauty around you.

Blessings to you in 2023!